The administration asked for a six-month delay in order to work on historical accountings for the tribal plaintiffs.
A motion stated the Interior Department would "define and complete" the accountings.

But Judge James Robertson said the truth was a little bit different. Another motion filed in court stated that Interior would use the delay to "prepare a historical accounting plan" for the tribes and even for those who haven't filed a lawsuit.

"This court cannot and will not dictate the details of any tribal trust accounting plan," Robertson wrote in a 12-page order. "However, it is the court's obligation to define the trustee's legal duties and resolve the
various charges raised in plaintiffs’ complaints."

The tribes are asking for an accounting of their trust funds and assets. The cases are similar to the Cobell lawsuit over the Individual Indian Money (IIM) trust.

Robertson was assigned the Cobell case after Judge Royce Lamberth was removed. He is also handling the tribal cases, some of which had been assigned to Lamberth.